One of the really strange and rare early pregnancy symptoms is the appearance of spider veins. they are usually going to be noticed on the upper arms and around the chest. it is really easy to understand how most women can become scared when noticing the spider veins. we are faced with a woman that is going through serious body changing and the appearance of these veins can have a really negative impact on her morale.

The good news is that when these spider veins appear there is nothing to worry about. Doctors will tell you that the only reason why they become visible is that we are faced with increases in blood flow. The blood will flow faster while getting to other vital areas of our body. you need not worry as the spider veins will disappear as soon as the blood flow will get back to normal. unfortunately the time will vary from one woman to the other.

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A new scientific article has been published demonstrating the profound impact of spasticity on patients with multiple sclerosis and the benefits and underutilization of intrathecal baclofen (ITB) therapy from Medtronic, inc. (NYSE: MDT) as a treatment option for these patients. the paper, published this week as an OnlineFirst article in Multiple Sclerosis Journal,recommends physician evaluation of ITB therapy as a treatment option for patients at all clinical stages of MS who are intolerant of or unresponsive to oral spasticity therapies.

“Severe spasticity is a debilitating condition that can have a negative impact on quality of life of patients with MS. while oral medications work to treat spasticity in some individuals, I see patients every day who can’t tolerate the side effects of large doses of medication necessary to treat the most severe cases,” said Mary Hughes, M.D., one of the article’s authors and chair, Division of Neurology, University Medical Group, Greenville Hospital System University Medical Center in Greenville, S.C. “The strong collection of clinical results on the use of ITB therapy in MS patients points to a clear need for physicians to help MS patients control their spasticity and restore quality of life with options like ITB therapy, which is safe and effective in carefully selected patients.”

The expert panel of authors, including leading MS clinicians from the United States and Europe, combined has more than 100 years of experience in MS management and has treated more than 1,500 MS patients worldwide. the article includes a review of literature on ITB therapy for spasticity in MS and provides expert opinion of the panel regarding patient selection and management of ITB therapy in MS patients. Medtronic sponsored the panel’s meeting and paper development.

According to survey results within the research summary, 84 percent of patients with MS reported at least some symptoms of spasticity, with 30 percent reporting moderate to severe symptoms. Of the 13 percent of MS patients who may be candidates for ITB therapy, only 1 percent of patients stated they were receiving the therapy. however, current data indicate that ITB therapy effectively and significantly reduces severe spasticity in ambulatory and non-ambulatory patients with MS.

The expert panel noted that the main barrier to the use of ITB therapy is that many physicians do not present ITB as a therapeutic option that is safe, effective and well-tolerated. this often occurs due to a lack of physician understanding of quality of life issues caused by spasticity, potential ITB benefits and appropriate patient selection, as well as their focus on disease-modifying therapies rather than symptom control.

“This article is a very powerful analysis of the need for greater consideration of ITB therapy by clinicians who manage MS,” said Tom Tefft, senior vice president and president of the Neuromodulation business at Medtronic. “We are hopeful that this paper will encourage more physicians to offer the therapy to appropriate patients.”

About Multiple Sclerosis and Spasticity

Approximately 300,000 Americans have MS, a chronic, often disabling disease of the central nervous system. Symptoms may include abnormal fatigue, impaired vision, loss of balance and muscle coordination, slurred speech, tremors, spasticity, bladder and bowel problems, difficulty walking, short-term memory loss, mood swings, and, in severe cases, partial or complete paralysis. Spasticity can occur when the part of the brain that controls voluntary movements is damaged or injured and results in tight, stiff muscles. In addition to being one possible symptom of MS, spasticity also can be a symptom of cerebral palsy, brain injury, spinal cord injury or stroke. for some people, the condition is so severe that it is impossible to voluntarily relax muscles.

About ITB Therapy

Medtronic ITB Therapy using the SynchroMed® II pump is the first and only fully programmable implantable drug pump available in the United States to treat severe spasticity. first approved in the United States in 1992, ITB is a complete drug delivery solution to optimize spasticity treatment and maximize function. the therapy delivers a baclofen injection directly to the intrathecal space where fluid flows around the spinal cord in patients with severe spasticity. more information is available at medtronic.com/your-health/severe-spasticity/about/index.htm

About Medtronic

Medtronic, inc. (medtronic.com), headquartered in Minneapolis, is the global leader in medical technology – alleviating pain, restoring health, and extending life for millions of people around the world.

Any forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties such as those described in Medtronic’s periodic reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results may differ materially from anticipated results.

Business Wirebusinesswire.com/

Last updated on: 05/02/2011 08:00:02

Phil Mickelson The associated Press

Master champion says medication is keeping his Psoriatic arthritis under control

Nancy Armour, associated Press

Published on Saturday, Aug. 21, 2010 02:36PM EDT Last updated on Saturday, Aug. 21, 2010 02:36PM EDT

Phil Mickelson is being treated for arthritis that surfaced just before the U.S. Open and left him in so much pain he couldn’t walk.

Mickelson revealed Tuesday he has psoriatic arthritis, which causes his immune system to attack his joints and tendons. He noticed the first symptoms five days before the U.S. Open, and the pain eventually got so bad he made a visit to the Mayo Clinic.

Weekly shots have brought the disease under control, and Mickelson said there shouldn’t be any negative impact on his long- or even short-term health.

“I’m surprised at how quickly it’s gone away, and how quickly it’s been able to be managed and controlled,” he said. “I feel 100 percent, like I say. but when I (was) laying there on the couch and I (couldn’t) move, yeah, I had some concerns. but I feel a lot better now.”

As if that bombshell wasn’t enough for the day, Mickelson dropped another one: he’s now a vegetarian.

“I know, I know,” he said as reporters laughed. “as long as I believe that there’s a possibility that it will help me overall, yeah, I’ll continue to do that. if it will somehow keep this in remission or stop it from coming back, yeah, I’ll be able to do it. but I haven’t put it to the real test.”

Mickelson has been threatening to replace Tiger Woods as world No. 1 since The Players Championship in early may, only to stumble at each opportunity. That’s led many to wonder what’s ailing him, particularly after his lackluster round Sunday at Firestone, where he made seven bogeys and a double-bogey—and just one birdie—on his way to a 78.

Turns out, the ranking was the least of his worries.

Mickelson, who turned 40 in June, said he woke up five days before the U.S. Open with “intense pain” in his tendons and joints that left him unable to move and his joints feeling sprained. Stretching, walking and anti-inflammatories alleviated the pain, and he went ahead and played Pebble Beach, where he shot 66 on Friday to put himself in contention. He wound up equal fourth.

But the condition got progressively worse during the U.S. Open and a family vacation to Hawaii afterward, spreading to his knees, hips and elbows.

“That’s when I got concerned,” he said. “I certainly had the gamut of thoughts. … I would just lay down and I couldn’t roll over. I was concerned about being able to swing a club and so forth.”

After the British Open, doctors confirmed the diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis. according to the Mayo Clinic website, the condition causes joint pain, stiffness and swelling. While it can be linked to psoriasis, the arthritis can appear without the presence of skin lesions.

Weekly shots of Enbrel lower his immune system, and Mickelson said the difference was noticeable almost immediately.

“I feel great now and things have been much, much better,” he said. “I’ll probably take this drug for about a year, and feel 100 percent. I’ll stop it and see if it goes into remission and it may never come back. it may be gone forever.”

“It’s not that it’s cured, but it may never come back,” he added. “Or if it does come back, I’ll start the treatment again and should be able to live a normal life without having any adverse effects. So I’m not very concerned about it.”

The arthritis is the latest health scare for Mickelson’s family. His wife, Amy, and mother are both battling breast cancer; the long-term prognosis for both is good.

While Mickelson said the arthritis didn’t affect his play at Pebble Beach or St. Andrews, where he was never a factor, he only resumed his regular practice routine last week. Revealing his condition earlier might have lessened some of the criticism of his game these last few weeks.

But that’s not his style.

“first of all, I don’t want excuses. And second, I don’t want to discuss something when I don’t know what the outcome is going to be,” Mickelson said. “For five or six weeks, I was a little unsure of how this was going to affect me long term. now that I feel confident it’s not going to affect not only the rest of my career or the rest of my life, but even in the short term it shouldn’t have an effect, I feel a lot better about it and I’m a lot more at ease to discuss it.”

Mickelson certainly looked at ease Tuesday during his practice round at Whistling Straits. He joked and laughed often with playing partners Dustin Johnson, Jeff Overton and Steve Marino, and it was clear there was more riding on the round than simple practice.

When Mickelson drained a 10-footer on 18, he gave a hearty fist pump.

“I’m probably not as sharp as I would like to be,” the four-time major champion said. “I didn’t play well at the British, obviously. I didn’t play well last week, on the weekend, but I’m able to work on it. I believe that the game’s coming around. I’m not sure where I’ll be on Thursday, but hopefully I’ll be ready.”